Harper Lee’s book was certainly a page-turner. We’d thought it’s status as ‘classic fiction’ might mean it was heavy going, but found it funny, exciting and accessible. The two entwined plots – Boo Radley and Tom Robinson (mockingbirds both) – made compelling reading, and the book succeeded as a story, as well as a moral tale.
Sometimes, perhaps, it worked a little
too well as a story – some bits tended to melodrama, we thought. Also, in order to dramatise events, characters were sometimes a bit two-dimensional; the black characters weren’t as fleshed out as they could have been, and the white poor families stereotyped as ‘deserving poor’ or ‘underclass scum’.
All in all though, we thought ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ fully deserved it classic status – one to recommend.
